1. Field of the Invention
The present invention pertains to a sliding bay window of an airplane cockpit. More particularly, it pertains to a kit for the installation of a sliding laminated window.
2. Description of the Related Art
French patent 2,720,029 discloses a laminated window for the windshield of an airplane cockpit, which includes at least two sheets of structural glass connected to one another by an intermediate layer made of transparent plastic material, polyvinylbutyral (PVB) or polyurethane for example.
The sheet of structural glass which faces towards the outside of the pilot's cabin can be covered by a third sheet made of tempered glass or glass reinforced chemically, through the intermediary of another intermediate layer made of PVB or of polyurethane. The third sheet and the second intermediate layer have dimensions that are reduced with respect to those of the two sheets of structural glass, so as to form on the latter an overlapping peripheral edge. This edge is received in a rabbet frame formed on the periphery of a cockpit window and is held in the rabbet by a pinching action.
This window allows one to contain, under all circumstances, the differential pressure which exists between the outside and the inside of the cockpit, and to resist violent shocks which can occur during flight, such as impacts with birds.
A sliding window is generally secured on a metal sash in the shape of a rectangular casing installed in sliding fashion in the bay window. One known mode of installation consists in securing the window on the sliding sash by means of bolts which pass through the window into the area of its peripheral edge. However, this solution is not entirely satisfactory because the holes made for passage of the bolts make the window fragile. Moreover, when there are variations of outside temperature there can occur a concentration of stresses on the window, at the location of the bolts, which are due to the differential expansion between the glass and the sash. On the other hand, the bolted windows are difficult to put in place because it is necessary to be able to exactly align the holes of the window with those of the sash and to make the bolt passage holes airtight on the sash and on the window.
In another known mode of installation the perforations for passage of the bolts are moved to a composite border located on the periphery of the window. This edging is comprised of at least two layers of plastic which include between them a layer formed by the extension of the first intermediate layer beyond the two sheets of structural glass. But this solution is complex and expensive, and has the disadvantage of irregular deformation of the edge in the proximity of the bolts, which can cause lapses of airtightness.